Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Viva.
The Sins Of Maryam
Everyone has a dark past. Including Maryam. And hers is something too humiliating to tell. Too vivid to forget. A memory she so desperately prays to erase from her mind. Maryam always prays. Raised as a Muslim, she was taught and trained to oblige and beseech for God’s forgiveness. Five times a day. Yet she can never seem to shake off her past. It keeps lurking around. Stalking. Waiting to pounce and stab her in the back. The more she tries to break away, the more it strangles her. Her dark past is one odd story. One with no marked beginning nor definitive end.
secretsonneteerPublished 4 years ago in VivaIt's Only Logical: A Sexual Trauma Memoir
My eyes appear in the dark, the jade encircling the noir. I maul an idea until I notice a rhythm, a pattern. My pupils focus; I see the downward motion—pushing, pulling, biting, I throw my head back, hands down, unleashing a compact bliss. My own depth darts to me, moving toward the French doors, looking for leaves that sway until the incapacitating winter. The wheat bristles wave and the leaves shake me. My mind runs to something banal as my hand runs down my body; my skin awakens. The twilight air flows in, and my mind, awake, turns toward my heart, inducing an anxious bliss that wakes me up and simultaneously kills me. To breathe at once into consciousness, an anxious flush makes way through nervous bundles and the axonal abyss, shooting stars into my heart. This rush is a shock that tumbles me into the darkness, into the woods and looking at myself while looking at everything else. The waking are startled in a hunt for green, seeking a letter that lost itself on its way to me. Like the purloined letter, I remain unaware of the message’s contents.
#MeToo
I know I'm a bit late to this movement but better late than never; and when better to dig up past trauma than the middle of the night ya know?
Katie ParishPublished 4 years ago in VivaWhat would happen if we stopped creating rivalry and drama between women?
okay so now you've seen the title of this post, think about it and i mean really think about it. For one magazines and gossip websites would go to shit, there would be no "tea" to spill. simple. If all of the females of the world stopped judging each other over apperance,boys,pay checks and everything else that causes the word "bitch" to come out of our mouths in a non friendly manner (might i add) and just stopped...to see over all these unimportant things, can you imagine how much greater our lives would be.
Aletia RobertsonPublished 4 years ago in VivaWhat Nobody Told Me About Having Sex for the First Time
Something is definitely wrong with me, I thought to myself all through what seemed like the longest night ever. My mind was still racing when the sound of the adhan pierced through the window blinds, interrupting my thoughts. As the call to prayer filled the room, I looked to my left to find my husband also awake, staring into nothing. My stomach churned with embarrassment. What had just happened? I had so many questions, all waiting to be answered by whomever I could summon the courage to talk to. Without saying anything, my husband moved closer and placed my head on his chest as if to comfort me and tell me everything would be fine.
ravifcboultPublished 4 years ago in VivaMilitary Reckoning
Right now, all over the news and social media is the horrific story of Vanessa Guillen and her tragic murder. The Army investigators say they have found no evidence of her being sexually harassed but her family thinks otherwise and I'm inclined to agree with them.Her death is one of many casualties of the United States military and its toxic culture issues. The military has long had a problem with sexual harassment/assault within its ranks and a reporting/ justice system that often harms the victims further. A large group of women veterans/servicewomen wrote a letter outlining demands to improve the failures of the service, titled “Women Vets & Servicewomen Demand #JusticeforVanessaGuillen - 4 July 2020”. I encourage you to give it a read, so many women risked putting their names out there and standing up for justice, that you can at least spend a moment to view it.
Mikayla DanielsPublished 4 years ago in VivaHow I went from hardly any periods to having normal periods
So through out my period having life I never had a normal period like ever. I could possibly go a year with only having one or two periods. It would change sometimes but not much. I was told two different things as to why this was. One of them was that I was just not producing enough hormones to have a full blown period. That made sense to me because I know a lot of people who are heavier that don't produce a lot of hormones. I was always heavier my whole life.
Lena BaileyPublished 4 years ago in VivaTop 3 Bad Ass Female Anime Characters of All Time
Girl power is awesome. Especially in the case of female anime leads. They're beautiful, walk with confidence; they all have the courage to go after what they want, and their resilience to protect what's most important to them gleams. Here are my top 3 female characters that portray these characteristics effortlessly.
The Journey to Self Love
It’s morning and after eating breakfast and getting dressed I head to the bathroom to shave. Not my legs, not my underarms, but my face…
Telling My Story
It all came to a head when I was 8 years old. The sexual abuse I had suffered for years was progressively getting worse. It started out rather innocently at first. My uncle cornered me more times than I can count while he was babysitting me. Sometimes when we were alone, he would grab me close to him and force me into a hug. He rubbed my bum in a circular motion that I came to despise. He said, "Come here and give your uncle a kiss.” I obeyed because I thought I had to. "Now give me a bigger one. Open your mouth,” he said as he pulled my head towards his.
Stacy DavenportPublished 4 years ago in VivaWomen Work Through The Night To Manage Work And Family Life
Working women face immense pressure at home, despite lockdown measures being lifted, as the expectation to perform professionally collides with domestic duties.
Ashish PrabhuPublished 4 years ago in VivaIts the price WE HAVE to pay I Don't Think So
Right now it doesn't matter if you are in the military or not, if you were ever sexually assaulted, molested, harassed or any way man handled in a way that you don't appreciate or you said no too; then you are my Battle. You are Vanessa Guillen's battle, because we have been there, I was just the unfortunate one to live.